BY JEREMY GOODE
(PHOTOS BY LENNIE MALMGREN FOR PSD)
NEWTOWN SQUARE,-- Some things were different about EA/AIS Day this year. For one, this year it was sunny, cloudless, and 67 degrees on Nov. 8. Second, Episcopal Academy was not coming off an Inter-Ac title, practicing to finish off the season a week later with a PAISAA championship.
What stayed the same?
There was the same intensity the rival schools bring every year on the field. This year, Episcopal would host the event and come away victorious in soccer, shutting out the Agnes Irwin Owls and scoring two goals in the first 10 minutes of the second half to win, 2-0.
“We worked so hard and all the seniors… there are a lot of us who won’t be playing soccer anymore, so knowing we went out with a bang and be able to say we won our last game against Agnes Irwin and played as hard as we could is really big,” Quinn Whittaker said.
From 30 minutes before until kickoff, it was an absolute scene. At Episcopal's E Field hundreds of students and parents were lined up behind fences 10 feet beyond the sideline. Blue and White filled the stands while Agnes Irwin fans piled in with their blue and yellow, traveling the five miles down the road to represent their school on this traditional day of friendly competition.
Senior Quinn Whittaker on Episcopal's Strong Season and rival victory agains Agnes Irwin
The first 40 minutes of play was scoreless. Both teams brought intensity and energy from the first whistle. Both teams flirted with their own opportunities. If winners could be named based on the half, it would have probably gone to EA just for their more consistent offensive drive and strong defensive and goalie play.
For Episcopal, the “slow start” of a scoreless first half was not a huge worry for the Churchwomen. In fact, with the way the team is built and the ability to sub in and out so many different players, the first 40 minutes are often the break-in time for EA.
In other words, they very much could be described as a “second half” team, often doing their damage during the final 40 minutes.
“Our definite plan was to try to get kids in early. We tend to be one of the teams in the Inter-Ac and area that go deep in subbing,” Episcopal Academy girls soccer head coach Andy Fraggos said. “We get fresher legs in; both teams played yesterday so we knew we had that to our advantage… so we tend to see the second half being an opportunity for us.”
EA/AIS Day would be no different.
The Churchwomen scored just over four minutes into the second half; Whittaker took a loose ball in front of the net off an EA corner kick and flicked home a shot to the back of the net.
“It was huge for us to get a goal and settle in,” Whittaker said. “There is so much energy today and this whole weekend, so to get a goal and being able to take a deep breath, I think it was really big for us.”
Any lead in an Inter-Ac matchup is a big deal. So, adding a second goal six minutes later really added to the frenzy of EA/AIS Day.
And that is exactly what Episcopal did. Continuously pushing attack, Bridget Dempsey was able to cross the ball to Kate Dente, who shot a one-timer to the back right corner of the net, giving the Churchwomen a commanding 2-0 advantage with a little over 29 minutes to play.
“Bridget had a great cross and once it got over I just knew I had to get there,” Dente said. “I think someone yelled, ‘shoot!,” so it ended up hitting the crossbar and going in.”
Throughout the full 80 minutes, EA’s backline and goalie play by Lauren Kreamer were flawless. The Owls put several balls on net, especially as time was ticking away, desperate to get anything on goal. Kreamer took care of everything, while EA’s defense made it hard on Agnes Irwin to get anything going, including open looks on net.
Episcopal Academy vs. Agnes Irwin on EA/AIS day. (Highlights by Jeremy Goode for PSD)
EA/AIS DAY game photos by Lennie Malmgren for PSD
A big reason for that was sophomore Anna Sturm, a center back who defended Agnes Irwin well, poking out loose balls and clearing any threat.
“The center backs, we worked really well together,” Sturm said. “We communicated on the outsides, we stepped in front… we were really aggressive on their players. We contained them really well. We know that they have a lot of technical ability but were able to step in front of them to block their shots.”
Senior Kate Dente Talks About Her Goal and Episcopal Being Able To Execute
It was a special day for the Churchwomen. A year removed from an Inter-Ac title and PAISAA championship, EA returned 16 seniors for the 2024 season. The Inter-Ac is competitive, and while EA was unable to repeat as conference champions, they finished the year with 15 wins, including wins against McDonough, Pennington, their first game against Agnes Irwin and their second game against Springside Chestnut Hill, finishing with a respectable 9-2-1 record in conference which was good for second place.
“There’s always four, five teams that can compete every single game and if you don’t show up to games, someone is going to knock someone off,” Fraggos said. “We saw that this season. It makes the Inter-Ac so competitive and makes the season fun and exciting.”
For Episcopal, their dominant win against Agnes Irwin on EA/AIS Day was the cherry on top of an incredible four-to-five year run. According to Fraggos, the senior class had around an .800 win percentage, while also being responsible for 80 percent of the goals scored in the last four years.
Sophomore Anna Strum on How the Churchwomen Lock Down on Defense So Well
It is a together group, and that could have been what really put EA over Agnes Irwin, according to Dente.
“We really wanted it today; for a lot of us it's our last game,” Dente said. “I think we were really playing for each other today rather than ourselves.”
While Springside Chestnut Hill won the Inter-Ac for the 2024 season, they had to play extremely well to keep EA in second place. Because there really is not anything second-rate about this Churchwomen team.
Scoring? In 13 in-conference games, EA scored 37 goals, which is good enough for an average of just under three goals per game.
Defense and goalie play? In those same 13 games, EA only gave up five goals. Five. And the Churchwomen had clean defensive sheets in nine of their 13 Inter-Ac games.
“This group can compete,” Fraggos said. “If they turn it on and together at the same time, this is one of the top 20 teams in the country.”
Next year’s team will be different. There will be 16 new faces looking to build off the culture and legacy that the last few senior classes helped build. But no one on the 2024 team will forget how fun and special this season has been.
When asked about what Whittaker will remember from this season, she responded, “the love everyone has for each other. Every practice we’re smiling, we’re laughing, we’re working hard. When we are down, we pick each other up. We’re just super close and just a great team to come to.”
The ultimate balance is there for Episcopal girls’ soccer: win, play hard, but have fun doing so while making memories. The team embodies a little bit of everything, concepts Fraggos preaches daily.
“I know we are competitive and I know we want to win and that’s the goal, but… we also are talking to them weekly that they are not going to remember their wins and losses,” Fraggos said. “You’re going to remember the time with your friends and being a part of this team and the program and making special little moments that you have that are sort of outside of soccer but with our program.”
